In this chapter, the "altereds" discuss how they can defeat the "greys" without the use of the eight crimson weapons. The "alters" explain that the human race has gone extinct before they were born, and that the "conversion rate" of the "hunters" is at least 20 times higher than that of the hunter-killers. They also discuss how it is a "tradition" for every member of each of the major families to become an "alternator" , and how the "eight major families" have been protecting mankind since the beginning of time. They explain that they cannot allow the "grays" to destroy the "balance" they have created, because they cannot let the "b*stards" survive